Short Reads (Page 343)

short readsJul 10, 2014

5 key takeaways from our census of statehouse reporters

To inform citizens about what is happening in America’s 50 statehouses, there are currently 1,592 journalists assigned to cover their workings, according to a new Pew Research report.
short readsJul 9, 2014

Americans, especially young adults, back strong economic ties with China

About half of Americans (51%) say it is more important to build a stronger relationship with China on economic issues, while 41% say it is more important to get tougher with China.
short readsJul 9, 2014

The politics of American generations: How age affects attitudes and voting behavior

Among U.S. adults, different age cohorts have markedly different political profiles, but the relationship is considerably more complex than young people leaning liberal and older people being more conservative.
short readsJul 8, 2014

Public libraries and the quiz-takers who love them

The Pew Research Center recently released a library user quiz sorting Americans into different typologies based on how they use and view libraries. Here are the results.
short readsJul 8, 2014

CDC: Two of every five U.S. households have only wireless phones

Two of every five U.S. households have no landline phones, but the growth rate of cord-cutting slowed last year.
short readsJul 7, 2014

What is a ‘closely held corporation,’ anyway, and how many are there?

The Supreme Court’s long-awaited decision in the Hobby Lobby case says “closely held” corporations can have religious rights that need to be respected. What was it talking about?
short readsJul 7, 2014

For gay newlyweds in some states, ‘limbo’ may last another year

It has happened in four states so far, and may well happen in others – a kind of marital limbo where licenses have been granted and vows exchanged, but the marriages themselves have not been officially recognized.
short readsJul 7, 2014

1-in-10 Americans don’t give a hoot about politics

As Republicans and Democrats gear up for midterm elections this November, there’s one group of Americans – that we call political Bystanders – that is paying very little, if any, attention to the whole ordeal.
short readsJul 3, 2014

Chart of the Week: How the Supreme Court justices line up

Supreme Court justices vote together more often than they don’t, but some of that agreement may be surface-only.
short readsJul 2, 2014

The Hobby Lobby impact: A Q&A

The U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing for-profit businesses to opt out of the contraceptive mandate in the new health care law has raised questions about what the ruling might mean for businesses, for future challenges to the contraception mandate, and even for the future of church-state law. We posed these questions to Robert Tuttle, one of the nation’s experts on church-state issues. He is the Berz Research Professor of Law and Religion at the George Washington University.